It’s a dog-eat-filet-mignon world.
As of the end of September, San Francisco’s food scene is now home to a restaurant called Dogue, which is ostensibly upscale dinning for, well, dogs. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, it’s offering the country’s first tasting menu for canines. That menu, which is available on Sundays, will cost owners $75 (roughly £67, AU$118) to put plates of such culinary delights as chicken-skin waffles and braised chicken breast infused with chaga mushrooms in front of their furry friends.
Dogue’s Instagram page is filled with photos of dishes you’d never know at first glance aren’t for human consumption, like squid tentacles and venison polpette.
These dogs are eating better than I do.
Dogue’s owner Rahmi Massarweh, a chef trained in classical French cuisine, started making elaborate healthy raw food meals for his own dog, Grizzly, after the Old English Mastiff seemed disillusioned with dry kibble, according to the Dogue website. “Using my knowledge as a chef, I started to explore the idea of seasonal, fresh, whole foods that I could make for Grizzly at home,” Massarweh said. He also started “handcrafting small batch, artisanal food” for pups and offering it to clients in 2015.
If the $75 price tag seems a little steep, Dogue also sells less expensive treats and pastries geared toward dogs, as well as “dogguccinos.” Food & Wine reported that the treats start at about $15 (about £14, AU$24).
“My approach is to treat this as if it was a human restaurant,” Massarweh told the San Francisco Chronicle of the establishment, which is located in the city’s Mission District.
While Dogue might be the fanciest or even first high-end dog restaurant out there, it’s possible to find menu items for pups elsewhere. Shake Shack has a “Pooch-ini” that combines dog biscuits and custard. In 2018, Burger King launched a Whopper for dogs (though only available through DoorDash). And Starbucks has a small cup with whipped cream called the puppucino.
